A press release from Republican U.S. Senatorial candidate Jim Oberweis:
Durbin caught lying about IRS contact at Chicago Tribune editorial board session
Jim Oberweis
Dick Durbin
CHICAGO — U.S. Senator Dick Durbin was caught lying today at the Chicago Tribune editorial board session when asked about his role in the IRS scandal.
Durbin was asked unequivocally whether he or his U.S. Senate staff had ANY contact with the IRS during the IRS scandal other than the well-publicized letter he wrote asking the IRS to target Crossroads GPS on Oct. 10, 2010.
Durbin responded that there was no other correspondence upon questioning by opponent Jim Oberweis, a Republican state senator from Sugar Grove.
Oberweis then produced an email from a Durbin staffer to an IRS staffer two days after the Crossroads letter.
Dick Durbin staffer’s email to IRS on October 12, 2010.
The email was first revealed by the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform in its June 16, 2014 report titled, “How Politics Led the IRS to Target Conservative Tax-Exempt Applicants for the Political Beliefs.”
“Dick Durbin flat-out lied to the Tribune editorial board. This is important because we don’t know how deep Dick Durbin’s role was in the IRS scandal that he himself characterized as reminiscent of the worst abuses of the Richard Nixon era,” Oberweis said.
Oberweis again called on Durbin to reveal all emails and correspondence he and his staff had with the IRS and this time tell the truth.
Durbin has refused to support a special prosecutor in the IRS scandal and is saying that only 2 of 100 people in Illinois care that the IRS illegally attempting to suppress Americans’ political speech.
Below is the exact question Jim Oberweis asked Dick Durbin at today’s Tribune session:
During this campaign we have noted that you and a few other Democratic Senators played an integral role in targeting conservative Americans free speech rights by asking the IRS to investigate them. In addition to the infamous Oct. 10, 2010 letter, asking the IRS to investigate the conservative Crossroads organization, we have asked several times for you to reveal any other communication you or your office had with the IRS during the midst of the scandal. You have mostly refused to answer this question, but your campaign sent out a statement recently that included the following assertion: “Sen. Durbin has posted all communication he had with the IRS on his Senate website — and it has been there for four years.” Do you stand by your campaign’s assertion that you and your office had only that one communication with the IRS during the scandal?
IF Durbin speaks ……. you can practically count on lies.
Why is anybody surprised?
What are the implications of his lie?
Did he coordinate efforts by the IRS to make it harder for Tea Party, Democratic and Republican groups to file as (c)4’s?
My guess is no.
Certainly seems odd for a liberal Democratic Senator to send a letter about a conservative 501c4 to an agency head, then a staff member of the Senator sends a copy of the letter to a staff member of the agency, stating, “We are not the first to ask, of course…”.
Coupled with stories from conservative groups having to jump through all sorts of hoops when applying for tax exempt status from the IRS.
What was the real purpose of Durbin’s staffer sending the letter to the IRS Commissioner’s staffer?
FYI, my boss sent this letter to your boss?
Typically if you want more than one person to receive a letter, you cc the person.
Not send a copy unbeknownst to the original recipient.
lol OldMan.
Precisely.
The easiest way to catch Durbin in a lie. is to watch and see if his lips are moving!